Regulation of expression and trafficking of junction proteins

重要器官由上皮细胞组成的专门层排列。这些物质形成了一个保护屏障，并调节物质通过该层的运输，这对健康的器官功能至关重要。上皮层的一个关键结构组成部分是细胞-细胞接触，其由大量蛋白质组成。在接触位点的许多蛋白质中，有一种是claudins，这是一种小蛋白质家族，负责调节跨层的选择性运输。过去几年的研究也指出，claudins的功能更为广泛，因为它们可以影响细胞生长和细胞运动。有趣的是，许多条件，例如炎症可以改变细胞中claudin蛋白的量，这具有巨大的功能后果。因此，了解细胞如何控制其claudin的数量非常重要。

Vital organs are lined by a specialized layer made up by epithelial cells. These create a protective barrier and regulate transport of substances through the layer, vital for healthy organ functions. A key structural component of epithelial layers are the cell-cell contacts, which consist of a large number of proteins. Among the many proteins residing at the contact sites are the claudins, a family of small proteins, that are responsible for regulating selective transport across the layer. Research in the past years also pointed out that the function of claudins is more widespread as they can affect cell growth and cell movement. Interestingly, many conditions, e.g. inflammation can alter the amount of claudin proteins in the cells, which has huge functional consequences. Thus, it is very important to understand how the cells control amounts of their claudins.